


Tsubaki

by AbsoluteNegation



Category: Saiyuki
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Fluff without Plot, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-27
Updated: 2019-05-27
Packaged: 2020-03-19 23:53:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18980938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AbsoluteNegation/pseuds/AbsoluteNegation
Summary: Gojyo never stops picking up strays.





	Tsubaki

The sun had only just settled down behind the trees when Gojyo rounded the corner in the path up toward the house. Hakkai wouldn’t be looking for him yet, but Gojyo was looking for Hakkai, craning a little to peer through the kitchen window. Sure enough, he was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of tea and a book, pretty as a picture. Gojyo shook his head at himself for the little thrill that the sight of Hakkai still gave him, and took the last drag of his smoke as he walked slowly toward the house.

 He caught himself before he dropped the still-lit butt to the ground; there wasn’t any sense in annoying Hakkai tonight (even if he actually wouldn’t see it until morning, anyway). Stopping in front of the door, he took a deep breath and raised his other hand to give its small occupant a meaningful Look. “Now you behave yourself, okay?” he warned gently. “This isn’t going to be comfortable, but I’ll get you out as soon as I can.” His passenger waggled slowly, and he picked up one foot to stub out his smoke on the sole of his boot. Once the butt was safely in his jacket pocket, he opened the other pocket and stuffed the small, squirming mass inside. Good thing it was little. Heavy, though.

Well, no point putting it off. He’d long since figured out that Hakkai had some kind of weird sense for Gojyo. It wouldn’t be long before he’d be there, framed by the door and asking Gojyo what he was doing out there alone, and then he’d be stuck, wouldn’t he? So he opened the door and stepped inside, giving (a definitely unsurprised) Hakkai a bright grin. “Hey.”

Hakkai’s return smile was warm, like the room and like everything else in the home Hakkai had made for them. “Hello, Gojyo. Did you have a good evening?”

Gojyo covered his reaction by bending over to untie his boots, pleased as fuck to report that “Yeah, I got three guys looking to punch me in the mouth next time they see me.” He straightened to to the boots of and gave Hakkai an even wider grin. “You can go get that quilt you wanted, tomorrow.” Hakkai had been sighing over that thing for the last week, ever since it had been put in the store’s display window, and seriously, Gojyo _lived_ for the delight he saw spark those gorgeous green eyes. Also, more than a little bit of pride, and Gojyo sparked to that, too.

“Oh, good,” Hakkai practically purred, standing up and putting the book away. “You didn’t actually provoke anyone into a fight did you?” Gojyo wondered for about the thousandth time if Hakkai really worried about that. The words said so, but the tone... .

“Depends,” he beamed at Hakkai as he pressed his arm to the wriggling in his pocket. “If ‘provoke’ means ‘won an idiot’s rent money’, then yeah, I probably did.” Hakkai beamed right back, and opened his mouth to answer, but faltered as he caught the motion. 

“Oh, dear,” Hakkai said, blinking at him. “Have you got something in your jacket?”

Gojyo sauntered past Hakkai, arm firmly pressed against the valiant struggle taking place in his pocket, determinedly distracted. “Hmm?” He shouldn’t have tried for that one, though; he seriously couldn’t remember the last time he’d gotten away with it. Sure enough, Hakkai was right on his heels, his tone still nice enough, but insistent.

“Your jacket. You seem to be holding onto it.”

“What?” Gojyo tried loosening his arm, but the struggle picked right back up again, but now with bonus tiny snapping that totally failed to grab fiercely onto Gojyo’s wrist through the thick fabric. Not impressed with this pocket shit, clearly. “I’m not,” he tried gamely, beginning to peel the jacket off in the most careful and hopefully inconspicuous way he could.

Hakkai wasn’t having any of it. “Mmhm.” He raised a thoroughly suspicious Eyebrow at Gojyo and, after a moment when Gojyo still didn’t answer, he went straight for the throat. “Gojyo, what’s in your jacket pocket?”

That was sooner than expected, and Gojyo flailed a little on the inside. He fucking _knew_ we wasn’t ever going to get away with this shit, but he was who he was, ground in by a thousand fights and threats, sheer audacity getting him out of more scrapes than he could count. He wasn’t about to surrender without pulling out all the stops. He slid the jacket off his arms and held it up by the collar, with the offending, offended, and madly wriggling pocket turned toward himself. Reached into the other pocket and pulled out the cigarette butt. “Didn’t want to drop it on the ground outside,” he said, and turned to toss it into the nearest ashtray as Hakkai sighed.

“And what else?” Hakkai demanded, gently enough.

“Hm?”

He leveled a sudden, bright smile at Gojyo that sent a shiver down his spine. “Well, if you’re sure there isn’t anything else,” Hakkai said, sweetly mercenary, “I’d like the jacket now, please. I’m going to run a load of laundry, and I can just fit it in, I think.” Gojyo’s hand tightened around the fabric, his arm jerking back a little bit. The pocket wriggled enthusiastically in response. _Fuck._ Hakkai’s head tilted a little bit as his gaze zeroed in on the movement, his eyes narrowing at it.“...Gojyo…?”

Gojyo sagged with that, a deep sigh slipping from him. “Fine,” he said, and reached into the pocket, hoping like hell the little fucker wouldn’t try to bite him. Again. He manages to get hold of it without injury, and he hangs his head a little bit as he holds his hand up to show him the little turtle resting on his palm. Hakkai was quiet for a long moment, blinking from Gojyo to the turtle and back again.

“...Did you win that tonight?” he asked eventually, and Gojyo blinked at him in turn, trying to imagine any situation where Hakkai figures he would take a fucking _turtle_ as stake.

“Uh...no.” It was all he could think to answer.

“Then where did you get it?”

Tsking softly, Gojyo lifted his hand, turning it so the little turtle was facing him, his voice slipping into something like what he used with kids. “I picked her up on the way home.”

“All right,” Hakkai said after a pause, head cocked a little in that way he had when he was puzzled by something. “Ah. What are you planning to do with it?”

“Um,” Gojyo answered, the question one that hadn’t really crossed his mind with any urgency, “I...guess I don’t really know…” He looked to Hakkai, his voice smaller than he meant it to be, “What do you do with turtles?”

Hakkai smiled a little bit at Gojyo, then looked at the turtle again, scratching his head. “The only thing I can think of anyone doing is...well...making soup?”

Stricken, Gojyo pulled his hand closer to himself, cradling the little creature protectively near his chest, covering it with his other hand. “What? _No!_ ” Hakkai reached out to touch Gojyo’s shoulder, and Gojyo turned a bit to get it between Hakkai and the turtle.

“I was only an example, you know,” Hakkai said as if that had been a perfectly reasonable answer to Gojyo’s question. He stroked Gojyo’s shoulder again. “I promise I won’t cook it.” He waited for Gojyo to unhunch again. “Although I suppose the only safe place to keep it right now would be the bathtub. Or a large pot…”

“ _No. Pots._ ” He frowned down at the little critter in his hand, knowing he should have thought about all this before he brought it home...but it was hardly the first time he’d done _that_ without thinking, and look how the last time turned out. “I dunno. Bathtub, I guess.” He looked up at Hakkai with a little smile. “Be tough for her to get out of there, right?”

Nodding, Hakkai answered gently, “I don’t think the sides would provide any grip, no.” Gojyo was looking at the turtle again when Hakkai finally asked **, “** How do you know it’s a female?”

Gojyo grinned. “My perfect instinct?” He chuckled, shaking his head. “I knew a kid who had one, once.” Flipping her over, he made a soft gentling sound to stop her flailing. “See...the bottom shell has a hinge, right? Means she’s a box turtle. It’s flat, and she’s got this skinny little tail…” He turned her upright again, smiling a bit at the way her little legs scrabbled, looking for grip, and turned her so Hakkai could see the tail properly. “Boys have dented-in shells, and fat tails.” He beamed at Hakkai who was smiling, and shaking his head vaguely.

“Well,” Hakkai said, and kissed Gojyo’s cheek quickly, “we seem to have acquired a turtle.”

Gojyo leaned into the kiss, warmed by the affection in it. “Awesome,” he murmured, then returned the kiss quickly. He lifted the turtle up to eye-height. “Come on, Tsubaki. Let’s get you someplace to hang out.” Beaming at Hakkai again, he asked, “We got any fruit? They like fruit.” Without waiting for an answer, he focused on the turtle again, cooing gently at her and heading for the bathroom.


End file.
